Musical Reading Activities For Esl Learners

Singing “Sight Vocabulary” FOCUS:
Reading
Comprehension
 AGE:
All
 LEVEL:
Beginning
and
low
intermediate
 MATERIALS


 1.

CD
of
a
song
on
a
topic
of
interest
to
your
students.

The
song
should
be
simple
 and
easy
for
students
to
memorize.
Also,
students
should
know
the
meanings
of
 most
of
the
vocabulary
words,
yet
may
be
unacquainted
with
their
printed
form,
as
 learning
the
written
forms
is
the
purpose
of
this
activity.

 2.

Transparency
of
song
lyrics

 3.

CD
Player
 
 STEPS


 1.

Go
over
the
meaning
of
any
words
that
are
key,
yet
may
be
unfamiliar
to
students.

 
 2.
Play
the
CD.
Have
the
class
sing
the
song
several
times.

Play
the
song
the
 following
week
or
two
until
students
can
sing
confidently
and
without
referring
to
 the
lyrics.
It
is
important
that
students
memorize
the
lyrics.

 
 3.

Once
students
have
memorized
the
song’s
lyrics,
show
them
the
written
lyrics
on
 the
overhead.

Play
the
CD.
Have
students
sing
the
song.

Point
to
each
word
on
the
 transparency
as
it
is
sung.

By
doing
this,
students
will
learn
how
each
spoken/sung
 word
is
written.

Have
student
volunteers
take
turns
pointing
to
the
words
on
the
 transparency
as
they
are
heard
on
the
CD.

 
 4.

Repeat
the
same
process
described
in
Step
3,
however,
rather
than
playing
the
 CD,
read
the
lyrics
aloud
to
the
students.
Point
to
each
word
as
you
read.


 Next,
point
to
each
word
on
the
overhead
transparency
while
students
read
the
 lyrics
aloud.

 
 5.

Randomly
point
to
a
word
on
the
transparency,
pause
briefly,
then
read
the
word
 aloud.

Then
randomly
point
to
words
so
that
students
can
call
out
the
answer.

 
 Complimentary materials from –

www.forefrontpublishers.com From a book manuscript on “Using Music to Teach English” by Suzanne Medina. Duplication of these materials is permitted if copyright and contact information is retained on copies. Only publication is restricted. Copyright © 2009 by Suzanne L. Medina All rights reserved. No part of this document may be published without written permission. Contact: FAX (310) 514-0396 [email protected]

Sticks and Stones FOCUS:
Reading
Comprehension
 AGE:
All
 LEVEL:
Beginning
and
intermediate





MATERIALS


 1.

CD
of
a
song
that
can
be
mentally
visualized.
Also,
the
song
should
contain
 vocabulary
which
is
mostly
familiar
to
students.

 2.

Transparency
of
song
lyrics.

Place
numbers
next
to
each
segment
that
provokes
a
 mental
image.

This
may
consist
of
one
line
or
several
lines.

You
may
use
lines
to
 separate
the
segments
on
the
transparency
them
if
you
like.

 3.

CD
Player
 
 STEPS


 1.
Project
the
song
lyrics.
Ask
students
to
identify
any
words
in
the
lyrics
that
are
 new
and
unfamiliar.
Write
these
on
the
board
then
explain
their
meaning.

Be
very
 careful
not
explain
the
meaning
of
each
lyric,
as
this
is
a
reading
comprehension
 exercise
and
students
will
be
expected
to
comprehend
the
lyric
that
they
read.

 
 2.
Organize
students
in
groups
of
3
to
4
students.
Assign
one
(or
more)
of
the
song
 segments
on
the
transparency
to
each
group.

Of
course,
this
depends
upon
the
 number
of
segments
and
student
groups
you
have.

 
 3.
Instruct
student
groups
to
illustrate
their
song
segment
using
stick
figures,
To
 complete
this
task
correctly
they
must
comprehend
what
they
read.
Circulate
so
that
 you
can
assist
students.

 
 4.
When
time
is
up,
play
one
lyric
segment
on
the
CD
then
pause.
The
assigned
group
 will
stand
as
they
show
their
stick
drawing
to
the
larger
group.
To
reinforce,
re‐read
 slowly
and
carefully
the
lyric
segment
from
the
overhead
transparency
and
relate
 the
words
to
the
students’
drawing.
If
there
are
any
misinterpretations,
correct
 students
gently
and
positively.
Continue
until
all
groups
have
shared
their
drawings.
 
 5.
Now
that
students
understand
song
segments,
help
them
to
comprehend
the
 entire
song.
Play
the
CD
again.
This
time,
play
the
song
from
beginning
to
end
while
 pointing
to
the
illustrations.

Ask
comprehension
questions
afterwards.

 
 Complimentary materials from –

www.forefrontpublishers.com From a book manuscript on “Using Music to Teach English” by Suzanne Medina. Duplication of these materials is permitted if copyright and contact information is retained on copies. Only publication is restricted. Copyright © 2009 by Suzanne L. Medina All rights reserved. No part of this document may be published without written permission. Contact: FAX (310) 514-0396 [email protected]

Share-a-Song 
 FOCUS:
Reading
Comprehension
 AGE:
All
 LEVEL:
All




 MATERIALS


 1.
CD
player
 
 2.
One
dictionary
for
each
group
of
3‐4.

 
 
 
 STEPS


 1.
Preparation
‐
Several
days
before
this
activity,
assign
students
the
task
of
bringing
 their
favorite
English
CDs
to
class.

Ask
students
to
e‐mail
you
the
lyrics
or
print
out
 lyrics
for
you.
The
font
large
enough
that
you
can
easily
create
slides
from
the
 printed
sheets.

This
will
provide
you
with
an
opportunity
to
play
the
CD
and
make
 certain
there
is
no
profane
language
or
inappropriate
content.

You
can
also
make
 transparencies
of
song
lyrics.

The
number
of
CDs
that
you
need
will
depend
upon
 the
amount
of
time
that
is
available.


 
 
 2.
Organize
students
in
groups
of
3
or
4.
Give
each
group
a
dictionary.

 
 
 3.
Ask
the
first
student
to
present
his
or
her
favorite
CD
to
the
class.
Have
the
 student
explain
why
it
is
his
or
her
favorite.

 
 
 4.
Next,
place
the
song
lyrics
on
the
overhead.


Have
groups
meet
for
a
few
minutes
 to
discuss
among
themselves
any
unfamiliar
vocabulary.
Using
their
dictionaries
 and
their
knowledge,
group
members
learn
the
meanings
of
the
unfamiliar
words.

 Circulate
to
provide
additional
support
and
direction.

 
 
 5.
Now
engage
them
in
reading
comprehension.
Assign
each
group
a
lyric
sequence
 (i.e.,
one
or
more
sentences).
Then
have
groups
generate
two
or
three
 comprehension
questions
to
test
the
class’
comprehension
of
their
lyric
segment.

 They
must
have
read
the
lyric
segment
and
comprehended
it
in
order
to
do
this.

 
 
 (Continued)


 
 6.
After
all
groups
have
finished,
the
large
class
will
meet.
Starting

with
the
first
 lyric
segment

that
appears
in
the
lyrics
and
using
the
transparency,
have
each
 group
read
their
lyric
segment
and
ask
comprehension
questions..
Continue
this
 process
until
all
groups
have
had
their
turn.
 
 7.
Play
the
song
for
all
to
listen
to
and
enjoy.
Encourage
students
to
sing
along.
 (Optional)
Play
the
song
again,
however,
this
time
encourage
students
to
act
out
the
 lyrics
while
the
CD
is
played.

 
 
 Complimentary materials from –

www.forefrontpublishers.com From a book manuscript on “Using Music to Teach English” by Suzanne Medina. Duplication of these materials is permitted if copyright and contact information is retained on copies. Only publication is restricted. Copyright © 2009 by Suzanne L. Medina All rights reserved. No part of this document may be published without written permission. Contact: FAX (310) 514-0396 [email protected]